The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Detection of specific target analytes, or chemical compounds, is important for many applications, including for example, detecting whether the concentration of volatile organic analytes exceeds flammability limits. Various sensors available in the art utilize the physical changes in the sensor film to determine a concentration of analyte present, such as a conductometric sensor, or more particularly, a polymer-absorption chemiresistor sensor. A polymer-absorption chemiresistor has a polymer film sensor exposed to a surrounding atmosphere containing target analytes (chemical compounds). An electrical charge is applied across the polymer film. When the polymer absorbs target analytes, this results in a volumetric change of the film, and hence the electrical resistance of the film. In such films, conductive particles are generally distributed throughout the polymer film to enhance the sensitivity to resistance changes in the material when the volume of the polymer changes. Sensor films having good sensitivity to certain analytes and vast applicability for a variety of applications are desirable.